Making the Shade Grant Program

The Georgia Forestry Commission administers the Making the Shade Grant Program to create healthier, cooler, and more shaded playground areas on elementary school campuses. The program responds to a lack of adequate tree cover at many elementary schools, particularly around playgrounds. Strategically planted trees are intended to reduce playground surface temperatures, ultraviolet radiation exposure, ground-level ozone and surrounding air temperatures while improving air quality. The program also seeks to increase green learning environments, incorporate the environmental benefits of trees into school curricula, conserve energy by shading buildings and air-conditioning equipment, and create useful shaded gathering areas for students, teachers, and administrators. Georgia Forestry Commission Community Foresters provide technical assistance with tree species selection, planting locations, planting practices, and maintenance education. Making the Shade supports eligible tree planting initiatives that meet the program objectives and are new projects, programs, activities, or initiatives not already funded through other sources. The detailed available-funds guidance states that the maximum grant award is $5,000. Grant funds cannot substitute for existing funding and cannot be used for entertainment, food and beverages, computers, or equipment purchases. The program is not intended to support tree planting solely for beautification. Ineligible projects include trail design and maintenance, property acquisition and related costs, beautification projects, and tree removal and maintenance. The Georgia Forestry Commission may reject proposals, approve partial funding, or make partial payments based on completion of agreed project milestones. Educational institutions, parent-teacher organizations, community tree volunteer groups, and neighborhood associations are identified as eligible recipients. Applicants must establish a working relationship with a local Georgia Forestry Commission Urban and Community Forestry Forester before applying and maintain that relationship throughout all project phases. Partnerships involving school officials, parent-teacher organizations, local tree boards or nonprofit organizations, volunteer landscape architects, local nurseries, and corporate sponsors are strongly encouraged. Students and parents may serve as primary planters, allowing the school community to take responsibility for watering and mulching and enabling classroom activities to be coordinated with events such as Arbor Day. Making the Shade requires a dollar-for-dollar non-federal match. The match may consist of eligible in-kind contributions, volunteer assistance, and private or public non-federal monetary contributions, provided all contributions are specifically related to the proposed project. Eligible in-kind contributions can include on-hand supplies, third-party donations of supplies or equipment, employee or volunteer time, fringe benefits, and professional services valued at the appropriate professional rate. Federal employee assistance and Georgia Forestry Commission staff assistance cannot be counted toward the match. Costs incurred before the grant agreement date cannot qualify as match, and expenditures for entertainment, food and beverages, computers, or equipment purchases cannot be used as matching contributions. Applicants receiving an award must document matching contributions through appropriate records such as invoices, canceled checks, signed receipts, payroll records, volunteer sign-in sheets, and utility bills. Match documentation is required before reimbursement is issued. Applications are accepted year-round. Applicants are instructed to review the grant application and guidelines, contact a U&CF Forester in their area to schedule an appointment, and download an application form to bring to that appointment for assistance. A copy of the completed application must be submitted to the U&CF Forester and also submitted by email or mail to the Making the Shade Program, Georgia Forestry Commission, 1055 East Whitehall Road, Athens, GA 30605, or shawkins@gfc.state.ga.us. Each application must include a signed liability waiver and endorsement letter using the form provided with the application. The supplied information does not state a competitive scoring rubric or a fixed application deadline. Because applications are expressly accepted year-round, the opportunity operates on a rolling basis rather than through a stated recurring annual deadline. Approved projects may begin only after both the grantee and the State Forester have signed a grant agreement. Recipients have one year to complete their projects. A final report is required following the project. Payment is generally made after project completion and review of the final report, although an advance-agreed payment schedule may be used and the Georgia Forestry Commission may make partial payments when scheduled milestones have been completed. Examples identified in the supplied material include 36 trees planted at Timothy Road Elementary, 34 trees planted with students and parents at Cooper Elementary, and 43 trees planted with approximately 100 students, staff, family members, and friends at Twin Oaks Elementary School.

Establish the required working relationship with a local GFC Forester before applying; ensure the project directly meets Making the Shade objectives; propose a new initiative rather than a beautification project or an activity already funded elsewhere; plan and document the required 1:1 non-federal match; retain invoices, receipts, payroll records, volunteer sign-in sheets, and other match documentation; consider the partnerships specifically encouraged by GFC